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Sunday, August 14, 2016

A hot and spicy weekend at the 2016 Oxnard Salsa Festival

On Friday, a relaxed road
trip from Orange County to Ventura County that normally takes a couple hours
turned into a rush hour traffic commute that stretched out to 4 hours – almost the
same time as driving to Las Vegas. Not sure what was going on, but we finally made
it to Oxnard just in the nick of time for the Professional Division Salsa judging
at La Dolce Vita in Heritage Square. Heritage Square is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. It
is a collection of turn-of-the-century homes and other buildings that were all
moved to this square, restored, and are now the home to restaurants, shops, and
even a wine tasting room.

It came down to 5 salsas for
the Judges’ Choice. Here is the list of Professional Division winners in each
category:

Immediately following the
judging was the VIP Sponsor Party where guests were treated to some tasty bites
as well as vote for the People’s Choice for the best Professional Division
Salsa.

Vallarta Supermarkets served up a Chipotle Cream Chicken Penne Pasta and Tres Leches Cake. The pasta
was a like a fusion of Italian and Mexican flavors. It was rich and hearty for
an entrée yet a great dish to serve banquet-style. The tres leches cake was
amazing! It was light yet creamy and decadent.

A buffet of the Professional
Division Salsas was setup up in the middle of the party so everyone could cast
their vote. And the winner is…BG’s Café!

Otani’s served
up their Season Fried Red Snapper and Tempura Vegetables. Their season fried
red snapper is so oishi! I would love to get the Izzy Special the next time I’m
in town. The tempura vegetables were a nice light side.

La Vero’s Restaurant served
up ceviche and carne asada nachos. The ceviche was clean, crisp, and not overly
citrusy. The chopped pieces lent themselves well for dipping with chips.

The carne
asada nachos was “muy delicioso”! This meaty behemoth was covered with carne
asada, queso, crema, jalapenos and tomatoes. I would love to have that as an
appetizer in the restaurant.

Tomas Café served up Jesus’s
Chilaquiles made with tortilla chips, green sauce, queso fresco, sour cream,
and cilantro. I would definitely order this at the restaurant with two sunny
side eggs on top!

Fresh & Fabulous Café served up their Spicy Burger in slider form which is topped with pepper jack,
jalapeno, tomato, red onion, lettuce, and chipotle aioli. They just recently
moved to 5th Street near the movie theaters and are opening on
August 20th. Lots of great stuff on the menu for breakfast, brunch,
and lunch ranging from breakfast entrees like omelets and pancakes to lunch
entrees like burgers, sandwiches, and salads. I would love to try their
Barbacoa Eggs next time I’m in town.

On Sunday morning before the
festival opened for the day, a new group of judges was rounded up to judge the
Amateur Division Salsa Recipe Competition. Our group judged the mild and medium
at first. We were armed with Missiontortilla chips and sour cream.

Judges in the foreground
judged the mild and medium categories while the judges in the background judged
the hot and specialty/fruit categories.

Ice cold water, margaritas,
and beer were served to cool us off as the sun’s rays started to beat down upon
us.

The medium category had a
huge amount of entries!

It came down to six final salsas
for the Judges’ Choice which included red, green, and specialty/fruit. Here’s a
list of the winners for each category:

Best Red - Dot Stern, Chatsworth

Best Green - Victor Franco, Pasadena

Best Specialty/Fruit - Mike Hill, Winnetka

Best Hot - Victor Franco, Pasadena

Best Medium - Marie Gutierrez, Ventura

Best Mild - Gary Ramsey, Willows

Judge’s Choice - Victor Franco, Pasadena

It was lunch time when we
were done judging, but the hubby and I were too full from the yummy salsa and
chips to indulge in any of the tasty treats available. The festival has a huge food
court serving a wide variety of different foods. Watch the YouTube video to see
various selections.

Mom loves roasted corn and simply
had to grab a cob! She loves it with butter so the sweetness of the corn can
shine through.

With the sun shining bright, Barrett’s
Lemonade came to the rescue with their Blueberry Lemonade. We always grab a
glass of their wonderful lemonade every time we attend this festival. It is ice
cold and goes well with anything you eat with it.

Another year of the Oxnard
Salsa Festival is over, but make plans to attend next year’s festival!

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About Me

OC Food Diva is a local foodie in Orange County, CA with 11 years experience in restaurants - from kitchen to service to menu & restaurant design. With an adventurous appetite, Chelsea scours Orange County (and the rest of the USA) for great eats.